1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to method and apparatus for extinguishing fires in ship containers and includes a kit for use in extinguishing fires.
2. Background of Invention
Standard ship containers are approximately 40 feet long, 8 feet wide and 81/2 feet tall. They are constructed of steel or aluminum and have walls approximately 4 to 5 inches thick. Typically, a container wall is comprised of a 1/16-inch sheet of steel or a 1/8-inch sheet of aluminum covering an approximate 1/8-inch sheet of wood, with another 1/16-inch sheet of steel or 1/8-inch sheet of aluminum on the outside. Since a wall runs approximately 4 to 5 inches thick, air is sandwiched between the layers. The containers may also be constructed of fiberglass. A single door will exist on one side or end wall of the container.
Typically, ship containers are packed tightly, leaving not more than 1,000 square feet of air space. It is standard for the top approximately 6 inches to be left clear for air.
All combinations and types of goods may be found juxtaposed inside of one container, including combustible goods, flammable goods, and highly flammable goods. Consumer electronic goods, of all sorts are commonly shipped by container.
Containers are stacked on a ship eight deep in the holes and five high on the decks. Attachment means exist to hold the containers together and to keep them from sliding over the flooring or decking. It is standard practice for at least one side of every container to be left exposed. This side is often, however, not the side having the single door. A small space is maintained among the stacks in the holes and on the decks to permit human passage.
With increasing frequency, the contents of a container catch fire, often during transit. When this happens, current practice dictates, for a container in transit, that the ship turn immediately to the nearest port. In port, either a floating barge with a derrick or a gantry crane is hired to unload the containers in order to remove the offender. Perhaps at this point multiple containers are on fire.
It should be noted that a ship also carries numerous bottles of carbon dioxide. When a hole has a fire the hole can be flooded with the gas to inhibit the spread of the fire until other measures can be taken.
The current practice and procedure followed upon the occasion of a container fire in transit involves significant loss of time and money. There is the expense of portage and the hiring of the derrick or gantry. There is the delay in the arrival of the other merchandise on board and the loss of the effective utilization of the transport vessel. There is the further possible loss or spoilage of merchandise surrounding the original burning container, the loss being heightened by the extent of the time of exposure.